James Earl Jones Reads the Bible-New Testament-KJV

by James Earl Jones (Reading)

With a voice as rich as it is recognized, James Earl Jones brings The King James Version of The New Testament alive with his narrative talents. Oscar nominated, Emmy and Tony Award winning actor James Earl Jones has earned a worldwide reputation as one of the worlds most versatile actors and voiceover artists. In over 19 hours on 16 digitally re-mastered compact discs, James Earl Jones Reads The Bible interprets the most enduring book of our time utilizing the acclaimed actors super storytelling and skilled characterizations. James Earl Jones, who includes in his credits The Lion King, Patriot Games and Star Wars, has provided what is hailed as the greatest spoken-word Bible version ever. With over 500,000 copies sold, this exquisite audio treasure is certain to entertain and inspire.

Genres: Religion, Audiobook, Christian

16 pages, Audio CD

First published November 1, 2003

About the author

James Earl Jones was an American actor known for his film roles and for his work in theatre. Jones has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances on stage and screen. He has also been called "one of the greatest actors in American history". He was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1985. He was honoured with the National Medal of Arts in 1992, the Kennedy Center Honor in 2002, the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2009, and the Honorary Academy Award in 2011.

Reviews

[Amy]

The version that I have is divided into 4 parts. First set contains, Matthew, Mark, Luke & part of the book of John. My goal is to listen to the entire New Testament on my commute (50 min. total - to and from) with other Christian non-fic audios interspersed throughout this year. I want to get something out of my commute other than the same songs over and over again on the radio!

[Amy J. Whetten · Rating 5 out of 5]

This CD of James Earl Jones' deep, sweet voice reading the New Testament includes a background soundtrack of hymn melodies. I purchased it inexpensively (about $20, new, including s & h)and can make any day better by listening while I get ready in the morning or drive to work.

[Royce Ratterman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous listening for the commuter.
I thoroughly enjoyed this version - well enacted.
- found the contents helpful and inspiring - number rating relates to the book's contribution to my needs.

[SKP · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Bible itself always gets 5-stars from me, but this version only gets 4. I love James Earl Jones’ voice of course, but I thought the editing of this wasn’t as good as most Audible books. You could hear a lot of pauses, breaths, volume fluctuations and other small details that kept me from saying this was as professionally recorded as most audiobooks are nowadays. I am glad I listened to it, but I thought it got a little over-hyped.

[Victor · Rating 5 out of 5]

The main interesting thing about this was that I finished it about 15 minutes before I turned on the news and saw that he had passed away.

This is the sort of voice that I want reading Scripture, especially when I reach Matthew 6:9-13.

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved hearing Darth Vader read the Bible, lol

[Vito LoCascio · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a while since I've read the KJ V. I enjoyed listening to James Earl Jones. Read this classic translation. I especially enjoyed hearing him say "Luke chapter…"

[Anastascia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed listening to James Earl Jones soothing voice as he read the Bible each day to me as I drove to work.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Critiquing the Bible as a book requires one to first decide whether or not they believe what it contains. Such philosophical discussions have gone on for centuries and I will not add to them. What I will address in this review is the quality of this audio version.

James Earl Jones reads the entire New Testament in a monotone. I assume this is to avoid inserting inflection that would reflect his personal interpretation of the work. If that is true, it is commendable but makes the listening difficult. It makes the interesting portions boring and the boring portions sleep-inducing.

In addition, there were problems with the recording itself. I am not knowledgeable in the mechanics but it sounds like some segments had to be redone and they have a noticeable difference in tone and volume. Very odd.

If you are interested in listening to the Bible as opposed to reading it yourself, there are probably better versions available. Sad, considering the talent Jones should bring to the production.

[Adrian Ramos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Just went through the entire New Testament-King James Version. Read by James Earl Jones. The 4 Gospels Matthew and Mark were very similar, missing lots of Jesus’s early life. But all the Bible stories are there AND I knew every one of them. The Gospel of Luke covered alot of things missing about Jesus. Then the Gospel of John blew them all away. Covered everything M, M and L had and more. Very detailed and seemed to be twice as long. Then Acts of the Apostles started to lose me. Paul’s letters were obviously written by someone with lots of time. I think he was imprisoned for most of that time. The other letters were a blur. - can’t say that I understood much. King James English is HARD to understand. Its kinda backwards. Revelations and end of time is scary as hell. Tried the Old Testament last year. It was brutal.

[Frederick Bingham · Rating 2 out of 5]

The New Testament, read by James Earl Jones, with his soothing bass voice. Most of the book was not very interesting. Only the Gospels and the Book of Revelation were of real interest, though I listened to the whole thing. The Book of Revelation was so strange, like a stream-of-consciousness dark fantasy a la the Lord of the Rings. It was filled with weird numerical symbolism, fire and brimstone, beasts with 7 heads and 10 horns (or maybe 7 horns and 10 heads), angels and judgment.

[MEK · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jones's reading is monotone, almost placid. But, I rarely make time to read the Bible and so appreciate the op to hear it read; the KJV is beautiful. - I stopped after listening to a few short epistles (I, II, III John). I could not stand the monotone and lost the impact of the words.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's James Earl Jones reading the King James version of the Bible. Do I have to tell you it's awesome?

The KJV is a beautiful translation, rich and poetic.

And James Earl Jones has a wonderful voice.

So, yes, it's fantastic.

[Matt Nolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it, my only complaint is the periodic sound of James Earl Jones licking his lips, haha

[sch · Rating 5 out of 5]

May 2023. Trying to start off the summer right. Finished, good review. As much as I enjoy the Shakespearean-era prose, I'm glad we have modern translations, too.

[LoveAGoodBook · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed at the lack of emotion used in the reading. It was pretty monotone.